Supermarket giant Morrisons and its 122-year history is currently sitting in the bagging area, having been snapped up for £7bn by US private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R). On the eve of a shareholder vote which could approve the deal, the BBC has been to the company’s birthplace to find out what the people of Bradford think.
Morrisons’ late owner once said you only need three things on your shopping list to run a successful supermarket empire - good staff, good suppliers and loyal customers.
It was with this ethos that Sir Ken Morrison created the fourth-largest supermarket chain in the UK, building it up from a Bradford market stall to one of West Yorkshire’s biggest employers.
Morrisons is among several UK companies that have recently been sought out by overseas investors - and is on the verge of becoming the second UK supermarket chain to be acquired by private equity in eight months after Asda was bought out in February.
The company has 500 shops and 110,000 staff. including more than 5,000 people in Bradford’s head office, stores and food manufacturing operations.
Should shareholders vote through the sale, CD&R would take control by November - or the beginning of the Christmas ‘golden quarter’ as retailers often describe it.
Another one bites the dust … 
I never shop at Morrisons, but only because I have Aldi and Lidl within easy reach (in emergencies) and two privately-owned supermarkets, Booths and Home Bargains, within even easier reach (for daily shopping), but it’s sad to see “the end” of a British company with a long local and national history.